Majority of Germans think Chancellor Angela Merkel should serve out her term

A new ARD Deutschlandtrend poll shows most voters feel Merkel's party has been successful in pushing its agenda. A majority also say Germany should use its budget surplus to invest in the future.

After a year of the grand coalition government with Chancellor Angela Merkel's Christian Democratic Union (CDU), sister party the Christian Social Union (CSU) and the Social Democratic Party (SPD), a large majority of Germans think the chancellor should serve out her term, which ends in 2021, according to the latest monthly ARD Deutschlandtrend poll.

Although the government received mixed reviews overall, the majority of German voters agreed that Merkel's CDU/CSU had been more successful than its SPD partners in advancing its agenda.

A large majority of voters were also of the opinion that Germany should spend its €11.2 billion ($12.8 billion) budget surplus on investing in the future. A large number thought money should be spent on financial relief for citizens. Very few thought it should be used to pay down the €1.93 trillion ($2.2 trillion) debt.